It was a week to remember for West Virginia track-and-field athlete Becky Pepper-Jackson, but not so much for the girls competing against the transgender teen.
The Bridgeport Middle School eighth-grader won the girls’ shot-put event Thursday at the Harrison County Middle School Championships, trouncing the second-place girl’s throw by more than three feet. Pepper-Jackson also placed second in the discus.
Those podium performances were made possible by the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals, which ruled 2-1 Tuesday in favor of Pepper-Jackson’s lawsuit challenging the state’s 2021 law barring male-born athletes from female scholastic sports.
Female athletes upset about competing against biological males who identify as the opposite sex typically grin and bear it, lest they be accused of transphobia, but not this time.
Five girls from Lincoln Middle School engaged in a silent protest by stepping into the circle when it was their turn to compete, and then stepping out without making a throw, as reported by OutKick, which posted video of the protest.
The official record from the competition held at Liberty High School in Clarksburg showed that five Lincoln students received an “ND,” or “No Distance,” in the event. One of the Lincoln girls also posted a “ND” in the discus, as shown on Athletic.net.
The Bridgeport team won the meet with 190 points, edging second-place Lincoln, which had 180 points.
🚨🚨FIVE middle school female athletes in West Virginia refuse to throw shot put against male, Becky Pepper-Jackson.
This comes just 2 days after the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals blocked the WV law that says you must compete in the category that matches your sex.
It’s a… pic.twitter.com/RzMgh4jVRU
— Riley Gaines (@Riley_Gaines_) April 19, 2024
Former University of Kentucky swimmer Riley Gaines, who hosts OutKick’s “Gaines on Girls,” congratulated the girls for taking a stand.
“This comes just 2 days after the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals blocked the WV law that says you must compete in the category that matches your sex,” said Gaines on X. “It’s a sad day when 13-14-yr-old girls have to be the adults in the room, but I couldn’t be more inspired by and proud of these girls. “
She added: “Enough is enough. The tide is turning!”
The appeals court rejected West Virginia’s bid to enforce its Save Women’s Sports law, which requires students to compete based on their biological sex, keeping in place a February 2023 injunction and sending the case back to the district court.
Pepper-Jackson, 13, began identifying as a girl in third grade and started taking puberty blockers in 2010 after being diagnosed with gender dysphoria. The teen is also receiving “gender affirming hormone therapy,” according to legal documents.
U.S. Court of Appeals Judge Toby J. Heytens said that requiring Pepper-Jackson to compete against boys would “expose B.P.J. to the same risk of unfair competition — and, in some sports, physical danger — from which the defendants claim to be shielding cisgender girls.”
“The defendants cannot expect that B.P.J. will countermand her social transition, her medical treatment, and all the work she has done with her schools, teachers, and coaches for nearly half her life by introducing herself to teammates, coaches, and even opponents as a boy,” said Judge Heytens, a Biden appointee, in the majority opinion.
West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey vowed to keep fighting to “to protect women’s sports so that women’s safety is secured and girls have a truly fair playing field.”
Pepper-Jackon and her mother, Heather Jackson, are represented by the American Civil Liberties Union and Lambda Legal.